On the other hand, the depiction of Margaret Mitchell of her Southern Belle is a bit different from the classical Blanche. In Gone with the Wind, the portrayal of Scarlett O’Hara shows a more versatile Southern Belle that transforms and adapts to life in Atlanta and on the plantation. Scarlet is seen from the beginning as a pragmatic woman who fights for what she wants regardless of society’s rules. However, this feature turns her into a social outcast because she is permanently judged by society for her bold decisions (not wearing mourning clothes after her husband’s
In No Name Woman by Maxine Hong Kingston, the intercrossing adaption of memory and narrative challenges the gender inequality in the old China. In relation to the unnamed aunt’s story, mother of the narrator talks story orally when the narrator tells story in print. The mother believes the story would keep the narrator from any act of sexual transgression, while the narrator retells the story to question the traditional system of gender identities, roles and expectations. With reference to the relationship between memory and narrative, this essay analyzes the influence of personal and familial memory towards one’s identity formation. To begin with, the narrative of unnamed aunt’s story is built up on the personal memory of the narrator’s
The emphasis of education is very prevalent in the novel. “Mama”, Mary Logan, is a representative of Taylor’s mother, Mary Logan was denied the chance of a complete education and it is she who insists on Cassie’s formal education. With an education, Cassie will have an opportunity to explore greater options in life where her only other alternative would be to get married. The female characters in the novel are role models for other black women. They advocate the need for an education – both formal and informal- as well as illustrate how important it is to allow children, namely girls, to become agents in their own right however through correct
Kathy Browns writes, “It was this subordination of African women to the needs of English labor and family systems that ultimately provided the legal foundation for slavery and for future definitions of racial difference.” It also, “created a legal distinction between English women and African women,” Brown notes. In 1655, Indentured servant Elizabeth Key sued for her freedom in the Northumberland County Court, on the grounds that she was a Christian and her father was a white man, and the contract he had negotiated for her was violated as she had served two terms of servitude. Though her master tried to have the verdict overruled to keep her and her two children as slaves, the General Assembly agreed to her freedom. However Hening points out that this forced colonial leaders “to think about the proper status for children born to white fathers and enslaved mothers.” And in 1662 Act XII was passed that would tie slavery to the mother, forcing her children to exist in the condition that she had. This law served the purpose of defining the status of children of interracial relations, and Hening notes that no statues or laws were created to protect enslaved women from rape after Act XII.
Imagine a life being dominated by others and being traded around like an object. Imagine a life having a constant fear of not being able to stand up for what is right. This was the case for Celie and many other black women during the early 1900s. America, for the most part, has grown out of these social injustices, but how much does one really know what events took place in these little southern towns? Alice Walker exposes real life examples of controversial topics to teach readers about what actually occurred during these one hundred years.
O’Connor has a distinctive style of writing that expresses this message through characterization, conflict and literary devices. From the first page, Flannery O’Connor describes his mother by making sure her characterization skills fulfilled to the max. Julian’s mother comes off as a strong and hard-headed woman who has the mindset that Negroes are inferior to whites. “’They were better off when they were [slaves],’ she said…. They should rise but on their own side of the fence.’” Julian’s mother is double-minded and shallow unlike her son Julian.
The article does not side with either party, but simply portray what both parties claim. Text 2, “Why black women feel so betrayed by Rachel Dolezal” an article published on The Telegraph website on June 26th 2015, written by the French psychologist Guilaine Kinouani, criticizes Rachel Dolezal for about lying about her heritage. “…and some have even expected us to be grateful for the work and energy Rachel Dolezal devoted to “the cause” […] Forgive us, please, if some of us feel as grateful to Dolezal as to colonialists.” (Text 2, 67- 75). The author feels as if Rachel Dolezal’s lie has had such a negatively affect that her previous involvement cannot make up for her lie. Text 3, “Let Rachel Dolezal Be as Black as She Wants to Be” a comment by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar published on Time Magazine website June 15th 2015, discuss the fact that race has been proven to be nothing but a myth and it shouldn’t matter whether Rachel is black or white.
Additionally, he focuses on the inferiority of women, who cannot openly exert their power. Most damningly, Steinbeck frequently considers that women are more easily susceptible to temptation, and cannot restrain themselves once tempted. These intentions of limiting women are subtle in his writing and project Steinbeck’s own bias against women. His unfair treatment of women allows readers to conclude the issue that John Steinbeck understood the uncontained strength of women, but was prejudiced against their actions, as supported and expressed through his
It pains me to tell you the truth, and I will do it honestly, let it cost me what it may. I will not try to screen myself behind the plea of compulsion from a master; for it was not so. Neither can I plead ignorance and thoughtlessness.” (827) In Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Jacobs has a hard time with rejogging the memories of sexual oppression from her master. Although Jacobs is not too comfortable with discussing the incidents with the world, her honest confessions of this mistreatment is a way of arguing against slavery. Jacobs’ life as a female slave forced her to do such things, that she could
Despite its unchangeable biological character, gender has a socio-cultural ring rooted deep in human psyche. Interestingly, female as a subject has always been ignored in writing autobiographies/ biographies, and if at all considered, they would comprise the elites of the society. For instance, Catherine Drinker Bowen, a famous biographer on being asked why she never wrote about any female, would either ignore the question or just say, “I wished to write of daring, extraordinary accomplishment, legal brilliance, and professional fidelity, and what female subject would enable her to do that” (qtd. in Heilbrun 22). This statement by Bowen clearly hints at the position, capability and potential of women in the society.